Chapter 8. Saturday, July 9

Ranma was in class. Today’s lesson was apparently Sex Education 101: Personal Gratification, and the teacher was… another Ranma, the one from the Nekohanten. That Ranma was dressed in the skimpy waitress uniform, complete with the frilly apron. She stood at the front of the class, holding a mini massager identical to the one Ranma had bought from the vending machine.

“Sex isn’t just your body parts doing stuff,” the Ranma at the front of the class was saying. “It’s also about your mind, your feelings, and your sense of self. Now, girls, you need to picture Mr. Wonderful as you get to work. Imagine what he’s doing to you. Where his hands are, and where other things are, too….”

Ranma herself put up her hand. “Um, excuse me, Ranma-sensei,” she said hesitantly. “But, uh, what if you don’t have a ‘Mr. Wonderful’? What if you’re… you know… single?”

“Well, Ranma-chan,” the Ranma at the front of the class replied with a smile, “that’s where your imagination comes in. You can picture anyone you like. Maybe a celebrity, or a fictional character, or even someone you know. The important thing is that you feel comfortable and safe with your fantasy.”

“What if you don’t even know what you’d like? What if you don’t even know where to begin?” Ranma asked.

Ranma noticed for the first time that there were other students in the class, and they were all snickering. “Oh, Ranma-chan,” the teacher said with a chuckle, “that’s perfectly normal. Many people don’t know what they like at first.” Somehow the teacher had now become Dr. Tofu, and he continued with, “Self exploration is a journey.”

The contradiction caused by the change in character caused Ranma to wake from the dream. She had a hangover of awkwardness and embarrassment from it, but at least this time she thought her subconscious might be trying to tell her something that might actually be useful.

She got up and washed, dressed, and arranged her hair. As she looked in the mirror, she found she felt fed up with making out like everything was so grim. “I am Ranma Saotome,” she said firmly. “And I’m pretty damn cute.” The girl in the mirror smiled back.

* * *

Being a Saturday, the day had a slower start and more to do to prepare the breakfast spread. Ranma was only too happy to help Kasumi and Akane in the kitchen, and found the domestic chores a welcome distraction from any more thoughts about who or what she was supposed to be.

At breakfast, Soun Tendo asked Ranma, “So, my boy, have you made any progress on undoing that Cat’s Tongue pressure point? I could run you a hot bath and we could try again. Maybe tie you down first? Happy to give it a go!”

“Uh, thanks, Tendo-san, but I think I’ll pass for now,” Ranma replied quickly. “I don’t think that’d work, you see, because until I cool it down, the heat keeps building and the pain gets excruciating real quick. And then the cold water would stop any change anyway. I tried that the first day, remember?”

“The boy’s a wimp,” muttered Genma under his breath. Ranma winced.

“I am working on getting the Phoenix Pill from Cologne,” Ranma reminded them. “Once I have it, I think we can get everything sorted out pretty quickly.”

“Well, don’t marry Shampoo to get it!” Soun cautioned, stating the obvious. “That old witch is devious, and I don’t trust her one bit. You need to be careful.” He looked thoughtful. “Maybe we should try a sauna instead.”

“Uh, thanks again, Tendo-san, but I think I gotta figure this out for myself. Well, actually, with Akane’s help. She’s been pretty amazing.”

“Well, do sort it out. Akane can’t go marrying a woman after all,” Soun said with a chuckle.

Ranma decided to let his comment slide, but Akane didn’t.

“You committed me to marrying Ranma-chan sight unseen, remember?” she said pointedly. “If I end up having to marry another girl, well, you’ll just have to live with that, won’t you?” She winked at Ranma.

Ranma smiled back, but she wasn’t really sure what Akane’s wink meant. Did she mean what she’d said as a joke, and the wink was to make sure Ranma was in on it? Or was she really saying that her feelings for Ranma were strong enough that she could imagine marrying her no matter what? Ranma decided not to overthink it. Whatever Akane meant, it was nice to know she was on her side.

* * *

After breakfast, Ranma and Akane headed out for their shopping trip. They went to a few different stores, looking for clothes that would suit Ranma’s current form and tastes. She told Akane that she was looking for something she decided to call “tomboy chic”; a style that riffed on more androgynous clothing like jeans and T-shirts, but with a feminine twist. The irony was not lost on either of them; in the past, Ranma had often teased Akane about being too much of a tomboy, but that was Ranma-kun. He wouldn’t deserve Akane’s help, but Ranma-chan did.

And Akane really was helpful, suggesting different styles and colors that would suit Ranma’s complexion and personality. They ended up buying a few outfits with clothes that could be mixed and matched, including two pairs of (rather girly) jeans, a couple of cute T-shirts, a nicer blouse, and a casual jacket. Ranma was really happy with what they’d picked out, and she was effusive in her praise for Akane’s insights.

Akane also ended up insisting, over Ranma’s (admittedly half-hearted) protests, that she needed a couple of basic dresses and skirts, saying that it was important to have a variety of options. Ranma gave in, figuring that having a few more-feminine pieces couldn’t hurt.

On their way to the dressing rooms again, Ranma noticed a cute jacket that she thought would look great on Akane and insisted that they buy that, too. Akane wanted to say no, but she had to admit that it actually did look rather good on her, and Ranma was insistent, so they added it to their collection. In the end, they ended up spending more money than Ranma had with her, but Akane chipped in, saying that Ranma could always pay her back later.

Partway through their shopping trip, after they’d bought a few things but still had a couple more stores to visit, they stopped for lunch at a small café. As they sat down, Akane deliberately chose to avoid mentioning her growing concerns about Ranma’s adaptation to her situation and instead decided to focus on a less weighty topic.

“What else do you want to do today?” she asked. “We’ll be done shopping in about an hour and we can drop things back home pretty easily, but what then? More training? Or do some studying? Or maybe do something fun?”

Ranma thought for a moment. “Well, I like spending time with you,”—Duh.—“and I’m pretty open to anything that’s fun,” she replied. “Maybe we could go to that arcade place you like? You know, the one with all the claw machines and stuff? Or a hike in the park? Or a museum? Or a movie? Anything really!”

Akane smiled. “How about we go to that arcade then? I haven’t been there in ages, and maybe we can win some cute prizes.”

* * *

The rest of the day played out just as they’d planned. They took their shopping haul home and Ranma changed into some of her new “tomboy chic” clothes. Akane was pleased that they looked good on her, and she also felt a little thrill of pride at having helped Ranma pick them out. Then they headed to the arcade, and spent a couple of hours playing various games, trying their luck at the claw machines, and just enjoying each other’s company. In retrospect, they probably spent too much money on the claw machines, which were, as usual, very reluctant to give up their prizes, but with a mix of dedication and a pile of tokens, they each ended up with a small soft toy as a souvenir of the day; Ranma’s was a floppy rabbit, and Akane’s was a little bear with an adorable grumpy expression.

As they were making their way out of the arcade, a young man came up to them and asked, “Excuse me, do you ladies know the way to the Nerima ward? I’m a bit lost.”

It was Ryoga, Ranma realized with a start. He looked disheveled and a bit worse for wear, as if he’d been wandering around for a while. Ranma drew breath to speak, but Akane answered first. “Hi, Ryoga-kun! We’re going that way ourselves—we can show you. How are you doing?”

“Oh! Akane-san!” Ryoga exclaimed, clearly relieved to see a familiar face. “It’s been ages! How have you been? And who is this you’re with?”

He scrutinized Ranma with a puzzled expression. She could almost see the gears turning in his head. “You look very familiar… I think maybe I see a Saotome family resemblance; could you be Ranma Saotome’s cousin, perhaps?”

Ranma couldn’t believe Ryoga hadn’t recognized her. She was about to put him straight when Akane cut in again. “Oh, Ryoga, this is Ranko Saotome, Ranma’s… uh… younger sister. She’s visiting from out of town. She might be here a week or so.”

Akane’s quick-thinking lie took Ranma by surprise, but she hoped it would work. A few months ago Ryoga had shown up at school and very publicly challenged Ranma to a fight to the death, somehow blaming her for the Jusenkyo curse he’d picked up. Meanwhile, Ranma had her own grudge against Ryoga for tricking Akane with his cursed form, an extremely cute small black piglet. It was one thing for Akane to dote on the pig, naming him ”P-chan”, in complete ignorance that she was holding Ryoga in her arms, but she thought it was completely unacceptable for Ryoga to allow himself be taken to Akane’s bed like a soft toy.

If Ryoga recognized her as Ranma, it would be bad for both of them, and probably also very bad for Akane and any nearby people or buildings.

So Ranma just smiled and nodded, saying, “Pleased to meet you, Ryoga-kun.”

“Oh, I see,” Ryoga said, still looking a bit unsure, but then accepting Akane’s claim with a brief frown. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, um, Ranko-san. And, Akane-san, it’s great to see you again.” He frowned more deeply. “I’ve been… well, I’ve been better.”

“Oh, no, Ryoga-kun, what’s wrong?” Akane asked, concerned.

Ryoga regaled them with a brief summary of his recent misadventures, mostly driven by his terrible sense of direction, but he’d also apparently run into Mousse, and that had somehow resulted in a challenge to a duel (which Ryoga had tried to attend but missed when he accidentally caught a train going the wrong direction).

After a minute’s thought—Aww, poor Ryoga-kun. He really needs a break.—Akane invited him back to come back to the dojo with them to get cleaned up and join them for dinner.

She was startled when Ranma suddenly seemed to channel the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old girl and exclaimed, “Oh! Yes, come to dinner! Come see Akane’s lovely home!” Then a flash of worry crossed her face, before she added, “Oh, but Kasumi-oneechan won’t have prepared extra food, so don’t make a pig of yourself, okay?” and let out a little giggle.

Akane saw Ryoga’s eyes narrow suspiciously at Ranma’s remark about the food before his smile at the invite returned. What was that about?

Ranma couldn’t help feeling that her “turn your weakness into a strength” approach clearly had some upsides! Admittedly she’d pushed her luck; her “don’t make a pig of yourself” joke could have easily caused Ryoga to realize who she really was. He’d figure it out eventually, of course. The moment they arrived at the dojo, someone was bound to call her by her real name, and then Ryoga would know that Akane had lied and all the old chaos would be back. Ranma sighed in frustration.

Setting that worry aside, she mused about what she could do to keep him out of Akane’s bed this time. If, by some miracle, they were able to keep Ryoga from realizing who she was, she might have a chance to “accidentally” splash him with water when Akane wasn’t looking. As a piglet, he’d be a little bit easier to deal with, although he’d also have no more doubts about who she was. Assuming that she was able to keep him under control, she could see a couple of options for getting him out of the way. The safest one would be to smuggle him out of the house and drop him off in a neighborhood a few stations away from the dojo, relying on his terrible sense of direction to keep him away for another week or two. But she was also tempted by the idea of insisting on her turn with the cute piglet, and giving him a “snuggle” he’d never forget. This is all getting too complicated. She wished they just hadn’t run into him, but they had, and she’d have to make some decisions before they got home.

* * *

Halfway home, they came to an intersection where pedestrians could cross in any direction, including diagonally. When the light changed, Ranma and Akane walked straight ahead, but Ryoga turned left. They waited for him at the corner so he could rejoin them. He waved to show that he understood, but when the light changed again he instead headed away from the intersection completely, disappearing down the street.

“I don’t know how he does it,” Akane said with a sigh. “He’s hopeless with directions.”

“What I don’t get is how he didn’t recognize me,” Ranma said, just as puzzled, and also very relieved. “I mean, we went to school together, right? We must have spent lots of time together. And it’s not like he hasn’t seen me in my girl form before.”

Akane struggled to come up with a diplomatic response. She knew she couldn’t just tell him that everyone—outside of their house—could only see a girl now. And she definitely couldn’t tell him that even she found herself thinking of him that way much of the time. She was sure knowing that would just make dealing with his situation even harder.

“Well…,” she tried, “you usually have this, uh, chaotic energy around you, right? Like, if you were being chased down the street by Kuno or juggling flaming torches wearing a bikini or something else kind of crazy, he’d totally know it was you. But right now, you’re just, um… normal? It’s like the thing you have going at school… you’re not… you know… being him. Maybe Ryoga will figure it out eventually, but I thought we might be able to avoid some drama if I just said you were his sister.”

Ranma didn’t know what to think about that. She held up her new soft toy, asking, “What do you think, Mr. Bunny? Do you think I’m… him?” Ranma put on a voice for the rabbit and had him say, “I’m just a cute little rabbit, I can’t help with your identity crisis.” She giggled and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I guess not.”

Akane smiled at the exchange, but it was a brittle smile. She felt like she was almost as out of her depth as Ranma was. She liked this girl, maybe even loved her, but she’d also been attached to him, the boy version. And this was all temporary, right? It had only been a few days; she was sure that nothing as dramatic as someone losing their sense of who they were could happen in such a short time.

She told herself that if she invested too much in this version of Ranma, she’d just be setting herself up for disappointment when things went back to normal. In fact, she now realized that his returning to “normal” could cost her a lot more than she’d thought. If Ranma went back to how he’d been before, would she lose all of what they had now? This closeness they’d developed? The sense of the two of them as a team? She felt sick. No matter how things worked out, it looked like she’d be getting hurt.

“I’m here for you, Ranma-chan,” she said softly, trying not to cry. She took Ranma’s hand. “No matter what happens, okay?”

Of course Ranma noticed Akane was upset. Obviously she was trying to be nice about Ranma’s situation, but she clearly wanted Ranma-kun back, and she was probably afraid that might never happen and she’d be stuck with Ranma-chan forever. Getting Ranma-kun back was what everyone wanted, right? So she understood what Akane was feeling, and while it was nice that Akane seemed to enjoy spending time with her, she had to make sure she supported Akane’s need for Ranma-kun’s return. “Thanks, Akane-chan,” she said quietly. “I really appreciate your support. And, uh, when I’m back to normal, I hope we can still be… you know… close.”

For Akane, Ranma saying “when I’m back to normal” told her exactly what Ranma wouldn’t say to her directly; while Ranma was putting on an amazing performance as Ranma-chan, she was still really struggling to keep that performance going, and more than anything she wanted to go back to being a boy. Akane nodded. “Of course, Ranma-chan,” she replied gently. “No matter what, we’ll always be close, even once you’re back to being Ranma-kun.”

They walked the rest of the way home side by side, each knowing that they understood what the other wanted, even if they themselves had conflicting feelings about the other’s desire. At least, they both thought, whatever might happen in the future, they were enjoying their time together while it lasted.

* * *

Back at the dojo, they did some light training; mostly just stretching and calisthenics to wind down after their long day. After dinner, they watched some TV together, and then headed to bed.

In her room, Ranma took Mr. Bunny out of her bag and put him on her futon. “There you go, Mr. Bunny!” she said, tucking him in. She kind of wanted to go straight to sleep herself, snuggling with her new soft toy, but she also felt like there was unfinished business from the night before. She got up to retrieve the mini massager from the back of her dresser drawer. While she was up, she also moved Mr. Bunny so he wouldn’t need to witness what she was about to do.

She laid back down on the bed, turned on the massager, and began to explore again. She tried to think of a fantasy to help matters along. Who should it be? Maybe Akane? No, that felt too weird. Shampoo? Absolutely not. And not Kuno, yuck! And definitely not Ryoga, either. Someone fictional then? But should it be a guy or a girl? She huffed. Why was this so complicated!? Guys could just jerk off, but she had to create some complex narrative structure to get the job done? Well, it didn’t need to be a prize-winning story, just something to get her going….

She imagined herself as an innocent young princess, lost in the forest, when a woodland spirit, a dryad of indeterminate gender, found her and wanted to show her the ways of the world. It was surely clichéd, but she felt it working. She felt a growing sense of arousal, and this time, with her mind providing the apparently necessary naughty narrative, she gradually built the feeling up. At one point, unsure if she’d make it all the way, she paused to give herself a brief break and just enjoyed how she was feeling right then. It was glorious; transcendent. She pressed on again, and finally, with the vital assistance of her imagined dryad with those long, supple fingers, reaped her reward, suddenly feeling beyond control and becoming a pulsing climax that shook her whole body. She struggled to muffle an involuntary squeal, just managing to turn it into a soft moan. It had been intense; more than worth all the build-up. What had passed for sexual gratification in her male form now seemed crude and shallow in comparison.

* * *

In a realm beyond Ranma’s world, intimately close yet impossibly distant, an entity resided; a mind—if we could even presume to call it that—quite different from any human. An entity beyond our sense of time or place. It was witnessing. This was its circumstance. Only a tiny fraction of what had transpired reached it, but it was nevertheless subtly changed. A fragment of an aspect of a word was learned. Love. And perhaps a little more of what it meant to be.

* * *

In the aftermath of her experience, Ranma just zoned out for a while, enjoying the feeling of contentment. Eventually, she fell to mulling over how very different this experience was proving to be. In male form, this stage was mostly dealing with the ennui and moving on as quickly as possible, perhaps with a bit of shame thrown in for good measure. But here she felt delightfully present, enjoying an afterglow seemed like it might last forever. Feelings of shame or regret were nowhere to be found. In fact, she was a bit wistful that it hadn’t built to an even higher peak and gone on longer, but she also felt like she might already be able to go again (although that might need more skill or practice with her sexy dryad storytelling or physical technique).

Somewhere inside, she felt some part of her desperately trying to convince her that if she would just calculate pleasure per unit of time spent, boys had the better deal; but that conclusion felt like a reach, at best. Who in their right mind wouldn’t prefer this experience? She cleaned off the massager and put it away, cleaned herself up a little, too, and then climbed back into bed, feeling more at peace with herself. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, a soft smile on her face.